Online Store Terms and Conditions - Belgium. Expansion into the Belgian market.

Looking to expand your business to other countries? Belgium could be the perfect choice. The country boasts stable legal frameworks and a highly developed digital infrastructure. Furthermore, its strategic location between France, Germany, and the Netherlands allows for easy access to affluent consumers in Western Europe and facilitates efficient logistics in the Benelux region.

However, it should not be forgotten that this is also a country where consumers value clear and transparent rules and consumer protection is quite strong.

To conduct online sales in Belgium, it's not enough to simply transfer the principles from your Polish store. It's important to consider the differences that can determine the success of your expansion.

Laws regulating electronic commerce

The most important regulations governing e-commerce include:

  • Act of 28 February 2013 – Code of Commercial Law (Code de droit économique );
  • Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (General Data Protection Regulation).
  • Code of Commercial Law

First of all, the seller is obliged to provide the consumer with so-called pre-contractual information in a form adapted to the distance communication technique and in clear and understandable language.

This contractual information primarily includes the main characteristics of the goods, data identifying the trader—specifically, the address of their registered office or business, telephone number and email address, the consumer complaints address, payment, delivery, and contract performance terms, as well as the deadline by which the trader commits to delivering the goods. Furthermore, the trader is obligated to inform the consumer about the possibility of withdrawing from the contract, specifying the terms of such withdrawal, and the form the consumer can use.

Withdrawal from the contract

The consumer has the right to withdraw from the contract within a period of no less than 14 days from the date of receipt of the goods. If the seller fails to inform the consumer of the right of withdrawal, the withdrawal period is extended by 12 months, and the consumer is not liable for any loss of value of the goods. There are also 14 exceptions to the right of withdrawal, including the delivery of goods made to the consumer's specifications or clearly personalized.

Complaints

The seller is generally liable for non-conformity of goods with the contract for two years from the date of delivery. The consumer should inform the seller of the defect as soon as possible. The contract may specify a deadline for reporting the defect to the seller. However, this deadline cannot be shorter than two months.

The consumer should then file a claim with the seller. This can generally be done within one year of discovering the defect .

If the goods do not conform to the contract, the consumer has the right to have the goods repaired or replaced free of charge. However, if the repair or replacement proves to be disproportionately expensive or impossible to complete within a reasonable time, the consumer is entitled to a price reduction or refund.

Personal data protection

Belgium, as a Member State, applies the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The authority supervising the processing of personal data is the Belgian equivalent of the Personal Data Protection Office, the Data Protection Authority ( Autorité de protection des données ).

Consumer protection

Consumer rights in Belgium are overseen by the Federal Economic Inspection Service ( Direction générale de l'Inspection économique ) (the equivalent of the Polish Office of Competition and Consumer Protection), and in particular by two of its agencies: the General Directorate for Economic Inspection and the General Directorate for Quality and Safety . However, these are not the only bodies enforcing consumer rights. There are also other public bodies dedicated to ensuring compliance with consumer protection regulations, which are dedicated to specific sectors, such as food, pharmaceuticals, and financial services.

Extrajudicial dispute resolution

The seller should also inform the consumer about the possibility of out-of-court dispute resolution. Since the European Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) platform was withdrawn on July 20, 2025, the consumer can use the consumer dispute resolution entity in the relevant Member State, in this case Belgium. The list of entities is available at the following link.

Summary

Belgium is a mature e-commerce market that combines high levels of consumer protection with transparent obligations for online sellers. It also offers effective mechanisms for amicable dispute resolution, which strengthens trust in e-commerce and encourages consumers to shop online. Its central location and high cross-border shopping make it an attractive market not only for domestic companies but also for foreign entities. Maybe it's time for you?

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